Sketch
by Marina Lenore
Summary: A picture is worth a thousand words. SessKag, CU. Updates Saturdays.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** Hello there, and welcome to my latest fic! This one is a bit askew compared to my others as it is based more (but not _completely_ , as some descriptions and actions will show) off of the anime. I am watching it currently in order to provide a proper accounting. Aside from Sesshōmaru being more expressive, Kagome having blue eyes, and a few of the beginning descriptions/events, everything else will be taken from the _anime_ , rather than the manga. This is another slight AU with Kagome being different than she was in the original material (16, an artist, and trained in her ki, although not in how to shoot), so things progress in a different fashion, although not _too_ different for a while. I hope you enjoy _Sketch_!

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Kagome frowned slightly, her tongue poking out between her lips as she sketched the scene pictured in her mind; recalling in every last, perfect detail everything she could about the situation that had happened mere days ago in her sketchbook. Slowly, the outline of an enormous canine standing on a floor of bones formed onto the page. He was growling viciously, acid pouring out from his mouth onto a small female human figure as she curled up determinedly, a barrier surrounding her in the not-so-vain hopes that it would save her. It had been a surprise when the daiyōkai transformed the moment she apologised for drawing the sword; she'd thought for sure he'd want to taunt her, but he'd admitted to her after the fact that his anger had taken over at that point.

Then, deftly, she added the small details – the way his yōki swirled his fur around, blown pupils on the girl's face, claws digging into the bones, the way his ruff had been standing on end… The texture of the fur, the clothes the girl was wearing, the sword stuck in the stone, protected by an invisible barrier mere metres from where the incident was taking place. That was a false detail since she had already retrieved the sword and thrown it to Inuyasha – it seemed the thing to do, as much as she disliked him – when this happened, but it seemed fitting to show _why_ this was happening.

Inuyasha was not in the picture, but that was because Kagome was infuriated at him for attacking his brother so violently. He cut off Sesshōmaru-sama's _leg_ , for Kami's sake! Talk about unnecessary violence! Kagome was glad that she knew how to heal yōkai thanks to her nekomata friend in the future who had taught her how to use her ki. Of course, that hadn't been much help when Kagome had been so freaked out by Mistress Centipede (she had a phobia of centipedes; disgusting things) that her ki refused to cooperate, but it had certainly simplified things after that. Now she was stuck travelling with a hanyō that refused to even say her name, much less treat her like her own person. She would much rather be travelling with his half brother, who had honour and class, for all that he was a merciless daiyōkai – Kagome knew that amongst yōkai the proper response to a pest (which Kagome had been at the time before she fixed his leg without asking him) was to just kill it and get that out of the way.

There was clearly no resentment on her part, and Sesshōmaru-sama had not been grateful, precisely, but he had definitely been intrigued after she sat his brother ten feet into the bones, screaming at him the entire time for daring to so grievously injure his half-brother when Kagome hadn't even been _hurt_ by the acid. _And_ when _he_ had gotten the sword that he didn't even fucking know how to use! At least Sesshōmaru-sama had training in swordplay and would have known how to use the sword, although she had also tartly informed the daiyōkai that she didn't see _why_ he would need it when he was so innately powerful; there was no doubt in her mind that he could kill a hundred yōkai in one go even without Tessaiga. Upon asking why he did not use his own sword, and finding out the answer, she had solemnly informed him that she thought Tenseiga was a far more powerful and useful sword, which had given Sesshōmaru-sama an adorably pole-axed look.

Kagome drew her thoughts back to the sketch and she pulled out her pack of a hundred coloured pencils, picking the correct colours and deftly colouring in the finished sketch. Fur turned a pristine white, with light blue and silver highlights. Sclera became crimson, irises a vivid medium blue. Acid was venom-violet as it dripped from sharp white fangs. Kagome's outfit – she only ever wore her school uniform _at_ school, strongly disliking how much skin it showed, and so was usually dressed in sturdy jeans and a long sleeved shirt around this time of year – gained blue for the jeans, evergreen for the top. Her hair; black with blue highlights. Eyes, cerulean, and pupils blown from startlement. Dusky grey backpack hanging from one shoulder as she curled up. Shimmering pink surrounding her and protecting her from the acid.

Well, that is what both she and the exceedingly gorgeous Sesshōmaru-sama had assumed happened. That it purified the venom as soon as it flowed through her barrier. There was really no other explanation – well, okay, there _was_ another explanation but Kagome was _so_ not ready to go down that road yet. According to Kirara – who had told Kagome that they would meet in this time as well, which was an enormous relief, because she desperately needed a friendly face – Kagome might as well be immortal because she could not die a natural death. Kirara wasn't so sure about her being _killed_ , but strongly suspected that even that was impossible.

Kagome just could not handle not being able to be killed. It was bad enough knowing that she was effectively immortal, so knowing that she was _truly_ so was just… Too much, alright?

After sitting Inuyasha ten feet into the bones covering the floor of his father's gravesite, Kagome had had a perfectly cordial conversation with Sesshōmaru-sama once she healed him; it turned out that her being a well-trained miko automatically earned her some respect from the daiyōkai. She had asked if he would mind coming by and teaching Inuyasha how to use Tessaiga—and when he had looked at her like she was insane, she tartly pointed out that if he didn't want the idiot hanyō to accidentally kill her, then said idiot needed to be able to do more than swing wildly. After all, he had already almost gotten her killed when he attacked Sesshōmaru-sama. The daiyōkai had given her a transparent look filled with ire, but then sighed long-sufferingly and stated – loud enough for Inuyasha to hear – that he would be back to try and get the sword.

Little did Kagome know that her actions had caused a number of unfortunate events to cease happening in this dimension where they had caused her group and several others very much trouble in another world.

Finally finished, she looked with pleasure at her picture, and then carefully pulled her roll of laminate out of her backpack, tore the sketch out from the book, cut off the fiddly little bits of paper connectors, and then cut the laminate to size. Then she laminated her picture, carefully flattening it out so there were no air bubbles; Kagome could always buy another sketchbook in case this one got wet despite her waterproof backpack, but she didn't want to risk her art getting ruined. Art was memory for her, even when she didn't keep the art piece in mind: this one was going to be a gift to Sesshōmaru-sama because his natural form was _magnificent_ in all of its glory and he deserved to see what she had seen. He would almost certainly never, _ever_ return her already ridiculously deep crush on him, but she could at least show him how much she admired him.


	2. Chapter 2

Shippō was the most _adorable_ person that Kagome had _ever_ seen. She smiled as he snuggled into her lap asleep and she drew a picture of him with the thunder brothers. Two more radically different related people she had never seen, and neither had she ever met two more unashamedly vicious and cruel people – seriously, making a _belt_ from the pelt of an intelligent being you slaughtered? Kidnapping women to rape and eat? They had been going to use her to make freaking hair care products, and one of those jerks – she didn't _want_ to remember their names – barely had any hair at all! The older one had just _vaporised_ the woman he'd been with simply from a fit of temper! Granted, Kagome would be peeved if Inuyasha left shards behind to chase after a pretty woman too, but not _that_ upset. Nowhere _near_ upset enough to take it out on a bystander!

Sighing, she drew the gross looking one first, focusing on the oddly pointed egg-shape of his head, the sharp teeth he had, the almost iris-less eyes, his pointed ears and the earrings he wore. Then she focused on his outfit: the sash tied around his body, then his sleeveless kimono, then the fox-pelt belt, then his hakama, then his boots. Next came the armour: the strange perfectly round shoulder guards with protruding metal pieces, the odd iron cuffs on his upper arms, the bracers around his forearms, the kusazuri around his waist.

Next came the humanoid looking one. He was more complicated to draw, but the detail kept her from thinking about how he had _eaten_ his brother's heart once Inuyasha killed him. First the pulled back hair with sparse bangs. Pointed ears with earrings. Sharply accented eyebrows. Narrow eyes with slit pupils. His neck, and then the beginning of his sleeveless kimono. The sash around his upper body and flowing down past it. His hakama. Then his own armour. Those same strange round shoulder protectors; nothing like the rectangular, articulated sode that most people wore for shoulder armour. This time instead of cuffs, his armour had a more noticeably protective armour plate going from the shoulder guard to the bracers on his forearms, with a jewel where they connected. Then his kusazuri. Then the small round pieces accenting his waist with trailing feathers behind them. His staff with stone accent. The wheels suspending him in the air, ten spokes on each one and flames flowing from their sides.

Then she added colours. The pasty, pale, almost yellow peach of the uglier brother's skin. His coal black eyes. The bronze of his earrings. He had blue armour on his arms with iron grey edges and accents, and a blue gem on his bracers. Wrapping around his rotund body was a lilac coloured silk sash. His shirt was black on top and red on the bottom. She saddened as she lovingly coloured in the orange colour of Shippō's father's fur. Then his brown kusazuri and black hakama. White teeth.

For the humanoid one, a darker tan for his skin colour, and cocoa brown eyes. Then the black hair, and after that, his bronze earrings. He gained bright red armour, a red jewel, and again iron grey accents on it. The silk sash he wore was baby blue. His kimono was more complex and patterned in white and midnight blue, but thankfully most of it was covered up with the brown kusazuri. Then she coloured in midnight blue hakama. The small balls on his waist became grey, and the feathers of some ridiculous kind streaming from them were shaded in a lighter grey. The staff was brown, with red for the stone accent on it. The wheels became a pale colour, and the flames were red, orange, and yellow.

Then she took a short break, heaving a sigh as she thought about her latest adventures. Inuyasha had disappointed her – yes, she had blatantly lied about his being in love with her but one would think he would be intelligent enough to realise that if he let the thunder brothers kill her then his Tessaiga wouldn't work any more. Granted, he had killed the ugly one – okay fine, Kagome would actually think their names – Manten, she corrected herself, before he could seriously harm either her or Shippō but that was _so_ not the point. The point was that he had no clue whether he could have actually beaten the two yōkai, especially considering they were shard-enhanced in a _major way_ , and he still refused to give up any shards despite her life being on the line.

If Kagome hadn't already been disabused of any ideas that he might have affection for her at all, that would have done so in a severe way. Thankfully she had never been attracted to the jerk – oh no, it was his _brother_ she was becoming smitten with! – because it was blatantly obvious that Inuyasha was only putting up with her because he wanted the Shikon and she could sense the shards. She was just thankful that she was already trained in how to use her ki because if she hadn't been, he certainly wouldn't bother to _get_ her trained. Another blatantly obvious fact. Well. He would _not_ be getting the Shikon from her, she was going to wish the vile thing out of existence for causing so much trouble, seriously. Thankfully she had only promised to help him on his quest, nothing more and nothing less. He wanted to find the shards, she would help him find the shards. She would _not_ be giving them over to him when it was time to complete the jewel however. No way in hell.

Hopefully he would somehow change enough before that time that there wouldn't be a fight over it, because if there was, Kagome would _not_ hesitate to purify him into being a ningen for several hours or days.

"What is that, miko?"

Kagome looked back, unsurprised as she had felt Sesshōmaru-sama approaching her for a minute now, and then looked down to make sure Shippō was still asleep – good, he was. She responded softly, "It's a sketch – well it _was_ a sketch, now that it's been coloured it's a drawing. Would you like to see it?"

She was watching the daiyōkai behind her intently, so at his nod she tore the drawing out of her sketchbook and handed it to him – she could draw Shippō on his own, that would be a better idea anyway. After a moment, the paper was gently thrust back towards her and she grabbed it, astounded when Sesshōmaru-sama softly said, "Your talent is incredible, miko. Do you intend to draw all of your adventures?"

She blushed lightly and nodded, "Um, yeah, I guess. Maybe not all of them but at least some of my enemies and extraordinary places we go to. Enemies, allies, friends, possibly homes, vistas, and things like them. I actually, um. I made a picture just for you. That is, if you would like it?"

Looking back, his face was perplexed, but in a good way, so she gently leaned over and grabbed her backpack, then pulled the laminated drawing she had done for him out of it and handed it back to him. "Here. This is for you. I thought you deserved to have a drawing of how utterly magnificent you are."

She cautiously leaned back so that she could better look at his reaction, and the widening of his eyes and his sharp intake of breath might have been miniscule reactions to some people, but to Kagome it was better than any words of praise. "This… You said this was for me, miko?"

She smiled and nodded, "Yep! I made that specifically for you to have so that you can always see how stunning you are."

His calculating gaze was interesting, but then he smirked – just a bit but still, he _smirked_! – and tucked the picture into his haori. "Thank you, miko. This Sesshōmaru truly appreciates the gift given. I would like to see your future artwork."

In other words, he wanted to see what she drew as she drew it. Well… Kagome smiled softly. She had at least one adult person who appreciated her talent at something other than being a shard-detector. She should snatch it up. _Especially_ since it meant more alone time with the ever-so-handsome Sesshōmaru-sama. "Thank you, if you seek me out I will show you what new drawings I have made each time."

Sesshōmaru-sama nodded briskly, turned on his heel, and left, leaving Kagome to start working on laminating her picture of the thunder brothers. She would work on Shippō later.


	3. Chapter 3

_A miko that can heal yōkai. The fool hanyō clearly has no idea of what a powerful treasure he has in his hands._

 _I must have her. I **will** have her. Only one with her power could match up to me, ningen or not. Ningen are useless creatures, scurrying little insects, but she scents not of death, disease, or filth. Clean, and a scent of pure power; like lightning. Electric, stinging purity. She will be **mine**._

Sesshōmaru, of course, had no idea what he was getting into with this unusual miko, but that was not all for the bad – oftentimes the things that change one for the better are the same things that they are unaware will change them in any way whatsoever. Lust for power – only rightfully earned – would lead him on the path towards compassion and love.

The first time he sought the miko Kagome out by her lonesome, Inuyasha was out hunting, and she was… _creating art_. It was unusual, to see a ningen capable of putting so much detail into something whilst also otherwise occupied – the kit that she had clearly adopted as her own was sleeping in her lap, and he knew half of her attention would be concentrated on not waking him up. Keeping his yōki tightly leashed so that his half-brother would not be able to sense or scent him, he walked up to the miko who – somehow this did not surprise him one bit – was able to sense him despite his precautions, as shown when he spoke and she calmly looked back at him, checking that her kit was still asleep before responding, and responding quietly when she did.

Sesshōmaru was familiar with painting and ink, but not the strange coloured sticks she had laid out next to her, so was intrigued at the idea of "sketch" and "drawing". It was unfamiliar and he determined to find out more about her utensils at some other time. First off, however, to see _what_ she had drawn.

When he picked up the drawing, he felt his eyes widen imperceptibly. Emotion was literally _oozing_ off of the page, showing disgust and distaste in waves despite the fact that one of the yōkai shown there was a relatively good-looking specimen. The other however… Well, ugly would never be too harsh a word for it. Still, he strongly suspected the feelings she held towards these two beings had _nothing_ to do with their appearance and _everything_ to do with her experience with them. It was awe-inspiring, what she could convey with simple coloured sticks and parchment. Especially when he glanced at the kitsune pelt and felt sadness and affection coming from that area, a dissonance that was somehow incredibly, perfectly fitting.

He asked if she intended to continue drawing things related to what happened to her, and at her confirmation, decided that at the end of this conversation he would state his wish – his _need_ – to seek her out and see her feelings about the things she experienced. Oh, not that he would say it in such a way, making it seem as if it were simple curiosity about her talent in this "drawing" form of art.

Then she informed him that she had made a piece for him – _why would the miko create art for this Sesshōmaru?_ – and at his confused and wordless acceptance, she fished it out of her travelling pack and handed it back to him.

He stared at the picture, astounded into muteness. Awe, wonder, and admiration were rolling off of the page in waves, focused on his natural form, and he failed to stop himself from sharply inhaling and giving too much away. She… felt those things towards his natural form? A _ningen_? Or at least, someone raised amongst ningen at the very best. By all rights she ought to have been terrified, or even disgusted – instead she… _admired_.

Truly, none could be a better match for him than the miko, and he felt his determination to make her _his_ – in every way; mate, lover, Lady – increase tenfold. Deciding to test something, he scented the air, and smelled the heady scent of attraction wafting off of her, a mostly sweet, but slightly tart, smell that perfectly accentuated her natural scent of power. _Perfect_.

Then he took in the rest of the picture. Kagome in the picture was radiating determination and willpower; the barrier on the page he was holding somehow radiated an echo of her stinging purity. Tessaiga was filled with the feeling of shock and – displeasure? Why would she be – ah; his hanyō brother had cut his leg off with the sword and Kagome had been infuriated at that. Remembering her screaming "sit boy!" at the hanyō and marching over and healing him with nary a word made him almost smile; certainly, even though he had at first been appalled at her, a mere ningen, daring to touch him, once he realised what she was doing he realised that surely she was no regular ningen, and that she deserved respect and admiration for her sheer competence and ability.

No ningen he had ever been aware of had the power to speed up yōkai healing, or the ability to manage such a delicate and complex feat in mere moments. It was astonishing, and when he had analysed her competence – which only took seconds – he had found himself pleased beyond what words could convey. It was as if what would take his yōki a year or more to complete had been sped forward smoothly and without any hesitance, interruption, or haste.

It only firmed his determination to make her his. _Mine. She is mine, although she does not know it yet, and she will be mine_ _ **forever**_ _!_

Finally, his ability for speech came back to him. "This… You said this was for me, miko?"

She nodded and commented that she had indeed made this art for him, satisfaction lacing her scent and aura, nearly making him shiver in delight. She took pride in her skills. She was pleased with his clear appreciation, rather than dismissing of his awe, and the attraction she felt towards him had deepened. Yes. Just like a yōkai, and not like what he expected from her. He rewarded her with a tiny smirk – which made her face light up and delight suffuse her form in a most pleasing way – before responding in such a way as to make it possible for him to visit her alone without his brother's obnoxious and displeasing presence. "Thank you, miko. This Sesshōmaru truly appreciates the gift given. I would like to see your future artwork."

Her appreciative response pleased him – it seemed he found many things about this talented onna pleasing – and he nodded once briskly, before turning on his heel and leaving, mind whirling as he adeptly avoided making any tracks and left the area.

Soon.

Soon she would be his. He just had to be patient.

Sesshōmaru was a talented hunter. He would catch his unknowing prey. And he had no idea how hard he would fall in the process.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N:** Many apologies for not getting this out on time; I ran out of my atap last Saturday and have had a rough week with hallucinations and nightmares and exhaustion galore, and am only just recovering from withdrawal and being off my meds. Thank you so much for all the feedback! 3

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Pain shot through Kagome's body and she shuddered, clutching at her chest as she tried to clear her mind. Tried to meditate. It was so _hard_ though! Even though most of the time it was only a dull ache by now, Kagome still _could_ _not_ get past the occasionally sharp spikes of pain that came from the grievous injury to her soul. Damn that Inuyasha, anyway. If only he'd been fucking silent and not said Kikyō's name then maybe Kagome would not have gone through the unbelievably excruciating experience of losing her soul – and damn that past-miko for binding her soul to the Shikon somehow, because Kagome sure as shit is **not** her reincarnation – into that clay doll. Now Kikyō is a golem walking around and Kagome wishes she was dead. She doesn't care about Inuyasha chasing after Kikyō and abandoning her, she just cares that it _hurts_. Maybe drawing will help.

Pulling out her sketchbook, she brought the focus of her overwhelming pain to the forefront of her mind, and began sketching Urasue. First was the wide head, sharp cheekbones, and elongated, rounded chin. Then came flowing hair, a headband with a feather in it and a slight pattern matching the kimono to be drawn later on it, and bulging eyes with small irises. Then the pointed, slightly hooked nose and painted lips. Next, the wrinkles covering her face and the bulges on her throat.

Her chest shot with pain again and she inhaled sharply, before shaking her head and focusing harder on the picture she was drawing. Next came the hanjuban, then the strange bulging fabric over her shoulders, and then the kimono proper, drawing the cross hatch pattern on the top of the shoulders and the small multi-limbed designs reminiscent of the spiral arms of the Milky Way galaxy on the body. Such an odd pattern. Those were only drawn lightly and then erased, however, because their colour meant that she had to have the impressions, but not them sketched in pencil. Then came the obi. Next came one hand outstretched, holding a jar of clay, long nails tapping against the round sides, and the other hand holding onto her large scythe.

Now it was time to colour the picture. First came the hair, a dull, slate grey colour that had nothing on Sesshōmaru-sama's brilliant silver or Inuyasha's stark white. Then came the feather, a simple, spare black. Next came the headband, a deep teal colour, then a coral strip with black cross-hatching, and then light grey of those weird little patterns. Then came the skin, which was a very pale tan. Eyes; dried-blood red, while her lips were a brighter, more vivid red. Her hanjuban was an odd, pale, almost-white purple, then the bulging fabric on her shoulder was the same dried-blood red as her eyes. Then came the kimono which was mostly teal, with coral cross hatch stripes on the shoulders and light grey patterning again. The obi was a dull medium purple shade, and the nails were a darker purple, just as dull in tone. Then came the light grey of the clay jar, the brown shaft of the scythe, and the dull iron metal and Kagome was done!

Should she draw Kikyō on the next page? It would be fitting, to draw the one causing her such pain so directly, but… If Sesshōmaru-sama were to ask her about being a reincarnation she would surely scream…

Then again, Sesshōmaru-sama had more tact than that.

Actually, she wanted to stay away from that for now. Kagome now had an idea of why she hadn't really looked much like either of her parents, and it would be really creepy to draw some feudal-era version of her features – which would surely be changing now that Kikyō's soul wasn't influencing her any more – in a clay body that was torturing her. Especially since she hadn't actually _seen_ Kikyō.

She'd draw the kumogashira they encountered at Nazuna's temple instead. Two of them, one to show off what the spider yōkai looked like from the front, and another to showcase the patterns on their backs.

First she drew a standard ningen head, bald at the top with hair falling down to frame the face along the sides. Then came blank-looking eyes with small irises, a standard nose, thin lips, and a broad chin. Defined cheekbones and frown-wrinkles completed the picture along with the ears.

Next came the body, slightly obscured by the head but still somewhat visible; egg-shaped abdomen and eight thick, fuzzy legs. She drew a slight semblance of the pattern on the visible part of the abdomen and thick stripes on the legs.

Then she started on a version from the back – she would colour them both at the same time. First she drew the outline of the head, bald on top with hair reaching around to curve behind the scalp, then falling down the sides. Next came the egg-shaped abdomen with the pointed end at the bottom and the wide, rounded end at the top. Then she drew the pattern – first a straight line going to a few inches before the middle of the back, then from that a large curved line that went in to the same position on the back – only lower, and then joining in a long U-shaped curve at the bottom, which joined in another large curved line, followed by another straight line. Then in the middle of the back, a dark spot filled the space between about an inch on each side of the pattern, giving it a mirror-like resemblance.

Then she brought out her colours. Black for the hair, a pale brown for the ningen skin. Black for the eyes. A soft, fawn brown for the main colour of the bodies, and then a dark brown – almost black – for the patterns and half of the stripes.

Simple, but evil and creepy as all fuck. Seriously – Kagome had never liked spiders much, but she didn't hate them too horribly either, however those kumogashira were just some of the creepiest things in existence!

That reminded her; eventually she needed to draw a picture of Inuyasha in his ningen form… and she had yet to draw Shippō either, but she had a feeling of tense waiting for that one; like it was just waiting for the right time to be drawn. Her instincts were telling her to wait, that something would happen that would decide on the proper time for drawing her precious Shippō. So she would wait on it.

With a sigh, Kagome noticed that the dull ache hadn't spiked into sharp pain for a while, and was less intense than before.

Hopefully she would get used to this soon…


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:** My antipsychotic failed on me - _again_ , which is fucking terrifying because there's none left I can take and we're resorting to other medications to try and stop the hallucinations - and I spent the past few weeks freaked out, scared, and worried. I just got out of CSU again, which was just... agh. Happy Christmas and Happy New Year everybody. As an apology and belated Christmas present, I'm updating two chapters today!

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Kagome smiled softly as she made her crush a cup of tea; pleasantly surprised that he had even said yes when she offered to make him a cup, and more surprised when it turned out that of the twelve teas she kept on her person, his favourite was the same as hers – white tea with berries and orange blossoms. His second favourite was also the same as hers, a green tea blend with blackberries and lime to mimic a blackberry mojito. Of course, he went by scent to decide, while she went by taste, however scent was eighty percent of how people tasted things, so she supposed it was really the same thing.

Humming as she tossed the tea bags into the fire, she handed Sesshōmaru-sama his tea and smiled as he took a sip and nodded to her with an approving look in his eyes. "Do you mind if I ask you something, Sesshōmaru-sama?"

He tilted his head to the side and shook it lightly, "This Sesshōmaru has nothing to hide, miko. Ask away."

She smiled more brightly and asked "How old are you? And how old is Inuyasha? I'm aware of the differences in yōkai ageing and hanyō ageing compared to ningen ageing – like I know that because my Shippō is kitsune, he's about seventy years old, equivalent to seven – but I also know that breeds change things, even amongst yōkai of the same overall type."

By overall type, she meant that he was an inu – however, the different types of inu aged differently to each other even if only slightly, so she didn't know exactly how old he was compared to her sixteen years of age. And Inuyasha had been pinned to a tree for fifty years, which had to affect him somehow.

"Hn. This one is approximately three hundred and eighty years old – the equivalent of nineteen. Inuyasha is two hundred; although only fifteen as he was pinned at one hundred and fifty years of age. Also, being raised in a mostly feral manner and learning by himself, he is less mature in emotional matters."

Kagome nodded, looking around to make sure Inuyasha was still run off. "I don't think he knows how to care about people properly, really."

Sesshōmaru nodded, "This is true."

She smiled and sipped her tea with a content sigh and the topic drifted towards her high school physics class. Sesshōmaru was devastatingly intelligent and had already theorised much of what she knew as fact, centuries before it was actually discovered by ningen.

* * *

Another fight – read: training session – another day, another chat. It was their third one this week.

"Um… Why do you hate hanyō so much, Sesshōmaru-sama?"

Of course, her main reason for wondering – that ridiculous crush she had – was not something she would ever tell him about, but she had other reasons for wondering as well. Like the fact that most families lived together even amongst yōkai, and that Inuyasha had been raised by himself and alone all his life… it was sad when it didn't have to be that way.

"It is not hanyō in general that this one hates, miko. It is the fact that many hanyō, being born of regular ningen without power, have no control over their instincts. That and the fact that somehow, this one's brother managed to grow up brash, abrasive, rude, uncontrolled, and too ambitious. This one knows it is not entirely Inuyasha's fault, but the hanyō spent at least a portion of his life raised by a hime. He ought to know better."

Kagome chewed her lip slightly and thought about how to ask this. Then she decided to hell with it; just get it out. "Why didn't you take up raising him when his mother died?"

Oh good! He wasn't insulted! Just mildly pissed, although about what, she was unsure. "This one could not find him. And when he did, the hanyō refused to have anything to do with him, so this Sesshōmaru left him to his own life."

Oh, ouch! So it wasn't just the blatantly obvious, it was also hurt and rejection fuelling his dislike for his brother. She reached out for a half-second, before thinking better about it and remembering that she was just a ningen. "Thank you."

Kagome blinked. "Um, huh?"

"You smell of compassion and understanding. This Sesshōmaru thanks you for caring."

How strange; but oh, how wonderful too! "You're more than welcome, Sesshōmaru-sama."

He lidded his eyes and then asked about her maths homework. She could change the topic for now; she had much to think about, especially the knowledge that a hanyō with two parents that had innate power was _not_ unstable. Hmm…

* * *

"You already know about gravity, so I can explain this to you. A black hole is a phenomenon where the force of gravity is so large that not even light can escape from it. A _supermassive_ black hole is a black hole with a mass that is larger than that of several hundred thousand up towards billions of enormous suns. Supermassive black holes are what hold galaxies in place, the force of gravity allows for the creation of solar systems and pulls suns in so that their gravity in turn can create planets."

"This Sesshōmaru is impressed, miko. You are quite knowledgeable."

Kagome smiled happily (he was _impressed_ with her! Squee!) and then tentatively asked, "Um, Sesshōmaru-sama? Why do you always call me "miko" instead of by my name?"

He tilted his head to the side and blinked slowly, "Miko is a term of respect for your position of being a powerful ningen. Does it bother you?"

She shook her head, "I mean, no; I'm pretty used to it by now, it's just…"

She lapsed into silence for a few moments, before her mind drifted back to the present and she sighed.

Sesshōmaru-sama spoke up again then. "Just what, Kagome?"

Kagome blinked, wide-eyed, and stared at him. He… He _said her name_. "How… How did you know?" She whispered, confused and pleased all mixed up together.

"Your scent and aura became disturbed. This one would appreciate knowing why your name is so important, but regardless will do his best to try to call you by your name occasionally."

She smiled with relief at that and then said, "It's just… everybody… Well… Kikyō…"

He frowned – barely, but still – before dismissively saying, "The dead bitch is no miko. Regardless of ability, she is no miko. And you are far more powerful than her anyway."

Sesshōmaru-sama smiled – oh _Kami_ that was gorgeous and amazing and _he smiled at her what the hell_ – and said, "The miko Kagome is the only miko worth consideration, in this Sesshōmaru's eyes."

Kagome almost swooned at that, because maybe there _was_ a chance. They were already friends. Maybe he wouldn't be adverse to more? Well, she would wait and see. Sesshōmaru-sama would have to make the first move if that was the case.

Oh, she was so happy! "Thank you, Sesshōmaru-sama. Thank you so very much."


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N:** **This is the SECOND chapter uploaded today!**

* * *

Kagome now knew perfectly well why she hadn't been able to draw Shippō before this point – because Miroku and Shippō were cut from the same cloth and the best of friends, always in cahoots together over one thing or another. She was even positive that – if he were older – Shippō would be just as much of a flirt and lecher as Miroku was; he _was_ a kitsune after all. Even male kitsune would turn into ningen women and settle down to have families with human males before moving on once they either got caught or their husband died. Fortunately – because the world simply _could_ _not_ handle two of Miroku – Shippō was a bit too young and innocent (and _subtle_ ) for that.

There was simply no choice but to draw them together. Sure, Shippō clung to Kagome ninety percent of the time, so adorably calling her "Mama" and nuzzling into her thick, wavy hair. But the rest of the time he was clinging to anybody, it was _always_ Miroku.

Smiling, she pictured them firmly in her mind and held the image there until it was fully entrenched.

First, a spiky set of bangs, then the smoothness of the hair pulled back, then the ponytail. An ear with two piercings in it – and she had to admit that they made him more handsome although he wasn't her type – then sliding up to finish the bangs. Then his face, which was neither overly lean nor overly chubby, sculpted and arched eyebrows, medium sized eyes that had a slight hint of almond-shape to them. Large iris and pupil compared to most of the people so far, a slightly pointed nose, and that smirk he always wore. Then came the pointed chin, his neck, and the beginning of his robes, which looked deceptively simple – she'd seen him doing his meditation exercises in the morning and it took a good fifteen minutes to get into and out of them. Once she finished the collar, she moved onto the shoulders, then the long, flowing sleeves. Then she went backed and sketched an outline for the robes, finishing the over-robe a good bit above the under-robe, and then moving up to draw the bow-knotted tie for the over-robe. Then she added appropriate movement for the wind to be blowing slightly as she already had for the bottoms of the robes, so that she could shade it nicely.

Then she sketched his hand onto the left sleeve, and his forearm on the bent right sleeve, carefully adding in the beads that held his kazaana in and kept it from overpowering him instantly. Then his shakujō, carefully adding the sharpened rings and making them look sharp, all six of them. Then she added the decoration at the top of it, and finished his image with his feet and sandals.

Now it was time for her precious, precocious son!

The ponytail with its spiky, wavy locks – and adorable thick puffiness – was first, then the bow holding it in place, followed by fluffy bangs and eyebrows sketched between them. Then one hand clinging to Miroku's hair, mussing it slightly, followed by wide, excited eyes with surprisingly cute and mischievous looking slit pupils. His tiny nose was just a simple point and his mouth was open in excited chatter, cute little fangs peeking out beneath his upper lip. Then came the fluffy pelt-like vest, his close-sleeved kimono top with leaves patterned onto it, and the bow for his sashinuki hakama. Next up was his other hand waving in the air energetically. Then she outlined the shape of his hakama and drew his footpaws standing upon Miroku's shoulder, balancing perfectly. Finally she added in his fluffy, soft tail swaying like a flag.

She added in some leaves and acorns bordering the edge, and decided she would take a picture of this sketch before laminating it. Maybe two. She was awfully attached to this and wanted to keep it, but surely Shippō and Miroku deserved to have pictures of her art depicting them. Yeah, she'd do that.

Smiling, she got her coloured pencils out and began colouring in the sketch.

First was Miroku's hair, a dark brown – almost black – in colour. Then his aubergine irises, white sclera, black pupils. His skin was a light peach wherever she added it. Then his over-robe, which was a dull violet colour, and his fingerless glove which was the same colour, the strings of it wrapping around his index and middle fingers. Following that was the light blue of his prayer beads, before she coloured in the bronze of the shakujō and the gold-plated adornments. Next came the brown of his sandals, and finally the dark aubergine colour of his under-robes, shading into near-black as the lighter colour of his over-robes acquired a suitably dark colour shading in the dull violet.

Now it was time for her Shippō. First the auburn locks of hair, almost red but not quite. Then the dark peach of his skin. Following that, teal for his bow and kimono top, orange for his furry vest, and an icy teal colour for the leaves patterning his top. His hakama were dark midnight blue, and his paws an orangey cream colour, matching his tail. Fangs were white, and his tongue was a cute pink, his eyes gaining white sclera, emerald green irises, and black pupils.

She smiled as she coloured in the leaves around the edge of the page with a spring green colour and the acorns a rich brown, keeping them simple and stylised to contrast with the portrait. Then she snapped a couple quick pictures of it, decided to take a third just in case, and carefully pulled it out of her sketchbook, cutting off the little nibs of paper and discarding them before she carefully laminated it.

There! She smiled and turned around just in time to catch Sesshōmaru-sama as he ghosted up behind her. "Hello there!"

Sesshōmaru-sama was the most handsome specimen of anything anywhere that she had ever seen, and she had a terribly deep crush on him. He was doing a great job of teaching Inuyasha how to use Tessaiga, and always had time for a cup of tea with her afterwards. In the last month or so he had dropped by twelve times, and their soft chats about various things always warmed Kagome's heart as Sesshōmaru-sama asked about the future and she asked about the past.

She got the feeling she wasn't the only attracted one there though, which oh, made her want to sing with joy! Kagome would never, ever be able to deny the honourable daiyōkai anything he wanted, because he would never push her boundaries and limits.

* * *

The excitement on his miko's face – because she _was_ his, he had scented as much over the past moon of teaching Inuyasha and the attraction was deeply entrenched on both sides now – as she turned towards him was gratifying to Sesshōmaru, who smirked lightly and reached out a clawed hand to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear with a raised eyebrow. Her flush was indeed promising and sweet-tasting in the air, and she squirmed a bit, biting her lip and saying, "Then? I'm not-"

He interrupted her before she could get very far. "The miko Kagome has been mine since the moment she healed my leg in the grave of my father," he said solemnly and with no small hint of smugness.

She raised an eyebrow herself and playfully glared at him, "I would protest but you're probably right. Have you come to see the other pictures then?"

He accepted her changing the subject – his miko would need to come to terms with being claimed and with the fact that it was _him_ claiming her; especially since now that his verbal claim had been accepted, he was going to place a physical claim on her before he left. Likely she had never once suspected she had a chance with him until the last time he visited, when he had given her a small, but genuine, smile for encouragement. "Yes. This one understands that much unpleasantness has happened."

She frowned and pulled the book of parchment off of her lap, turning two pages back. He took it from her, crouching down lightly and humming under his breath as he looked at Urasue, the necromantic ogre sorceress who resurrected the clay bitch that he was still raging to murder for the sin of her existence mutilating his miko's soul. Kagome would not look up, but he did not need to see her face, the drawing spoke loud and clear: distaste; agonising pain; a dull ache that would never, ever leave; fear; anger.

No more. If he were to dwell on this he would slaughter the clay miko and be done with it, and whilst that would benefit his future mate, it would ruin things with his idiot half brother and he couldn't risk that when Kagome needed the fool to help her. Granted, Sesshōmaru would help in any way he could, but he had a duty, lands to patrol, yōkai to keep in control, and could not replace his damn fool brother on this journey – not _yet_ at least. Kikyō was keeping Inuyasha distracted from annoying Kagome as much by being a foolish jerk towards her. It was not her fault he could not see in her what everybody else did, after all.

Then he turned the page to find two kumogashira on it and raised an eyebrow. The main feeling emanating off of this drawing was a fervent and sickened dislike. "You dislike spiders in general or simply the kumogashira?"

She looked up – finally – and grimaced, "Well I'm not a _fan_ of spiders but they're good for the environment and normally don't bother me but kumogashira… Eugh. Disgusting things. Then again, I would feel that way about many different animal/ningen combinations. So it isn't just those creatures."

He nodded and handed the book back to her. He had hoped for more than just that, but mostly so he could spend more time with his onna. As if sensing this, she smiled and pulled something out from behind her, extending it to him, "Here! Something happy again! My son and the monk that I see as a perverted older brother."

Oh? Her adopted family? This should be good. He took the page and suppressed a smile at the complete adoration pouring off of the kitsune. Ah yes. His miko would make a fantastic mate. Their pups would be powerful and loved. The feeling of fondness and love in this portrait was cleansing of the negative emotions that the other pictures had given him, and he allowed his gaze to soften and land on his miko. "This one doubts that you will be anything other than a wonderful mother, Kagome."

She flushed deeply, clearly catching the subtext, and bit her lip, looking away for a moment before smiling shyly back at him, "I try. That's the best I can do."

Hn. Still humble in her own way. Strangely enough, it endeared him to her even more, a soft feeling that he had not experienced since he was but a young pup. That decided him, and he took the next step in their relationship by asking, "May this one place his courting mark upon you, miko Kagome?"

She looked at him, wide-eyed, before nodding slowly and extending her wrists. Hn. It was pleasant that she knew already what to do and he would not have to explain to her. The courting mark was _not_ a promise of mating, but a promise of wooing.

He took her right wrist first, and licked over the skin over her pulse point, which made her shudder softly. He flicked his gaze over to her only to find her flushed and beginning to breathe heavily. He filed it away for later – he must concentrate on this task first before wondering how much of his touch would affect her similarly. Then, once the area was cleaned and numbed, he grazed his fang over it in a strip, which resulted in a lavender stripe crossing her wrist much like his own crimson stripe. He was pleased – it was a more than fitting mark. Sesshōmaru grabbed her other wrist and repeated the gesture, knowing that likely the only reasons she was agreeing to this so early on was two things; one, being the attraction they shared, and the second, being the protection that his mark would give her as it exuded his scent from her skin. That was the most important reason for marking her so soon, and she assuredly was aware of that.

His idiot half brother would likely not notice for some sennights yet unless it got pointed out to him, by which time Sesshōmaru would have spent more time with Kagome and be wooing her properly.

A surge of protectiveness crashed over him as he gazed at her flushed, slightly shivering form, and he crushed her to him, nuzzling her hair. " _Mine_."

Neither of them were standing, but that just made things more intimate as he held her until she had calmed. Once she was calmed down he smiled slightly at her and nodded; she nodded back with a brighter smile and he stood up after kissing her forehead swiftly, stalking away before leaving via his mokomoko-cloud.

* * *

Kagome watched, dazed and pleased, as Sesshōmaru abruptly left. Inuyasha would be back soon but he hadn't left because of that. He had left because it was the right time. Kagome needed time to compose herself before the idiot hanyō got back, and to make sure that she had her sleeves covering her wrists at all times until he noticed on his own. He wouldn't understand. The longer that took, the better it would be for Kagome because the longer it would be that Kikyō would have time to work on swaying him to her side. Right now he was still more confused than anything else.

That needed to change (hopefully) before he noticed.

Somehow Kagome had a feeling she wouldn't get her wish.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N:** Oh gosh so much has happened guys! My life is still all over the place, mainly because, while we found a few more meds to try (I've been on six new meds in the last two months =_=) and got one that works _amazingly_ to control my mania **and** my depression, it doesn't make me sleep like most of my others have. We're working on it but right now I'm very manic and hardly sleeping at all. However, I have a few chapters written, and am working on trying to get more written! It's hard but I'm not giving up by any means! So here; it's not a Saturday but I'll be at a friend's this weekend and might not be able to update. So have a chapter!

* * *

Kagome frowned softly as she outlined her latest picture. It was finally time to draw Kikyō, after that whole mess with her evil shinidamachū stealing the souls of innocent young women, and she had just the perfect way to draw the undead miko. That first glimpse of her – because Kagome had never seen her during her "rebirth" or after it, unlike most everyone else – reclining in a tree, with souls swirling about in the air around it, was the perfect image to convey the suffering miko. Kagome was a suffering miko too – _mainly because of Kikyō_ , she thought as her chest ached with a dull, throbbing pain that never, ever left her. Inuyasha should have been kind and just slain Kikyō while he had the chance, but she could understand his feelings – if it had been Sesshōmaru-sama in Kikyō's position, and he still wanted to live for any reason whatsoever, Kagome would not have been able to deny him unless that reason went completely counter to his honour in _every_ way. If there was even a smidgen of his honour left, she would fold like a deck of cards.

No, she didn't love the daiyōkai yet, but she cared deeply for him, and she rather thought that Inuyasha felt the same about Kikyō – a deep caring, wanting her to be happy, but not really a romantic love. They hadn't interacted enough for a deep, all-consuming love to bloom, as shown by Kikyō's heart filled with hatred. Kikyō had her full soul back after all, just with a piece of Kagome's soul holding it to this earth. Bah that wasn't the point.

The point was that part of Kikyō simply wished to return to the simple, uncomplicated life of being a village miko and healing, soothing, and blessing other ningen. So she could understand where Inuyasha was coming from, although she didn't like being forever in pain.

First came the outline of the tree Kikyō was reclining in, its wide trunk and thick branches spreading out above the thick grass of the clearing. One, two, three four, five, six main branches; the furthest left being thicker, the two beside and behind it being thinner. Then two thicker ones and the almost slender one that was holding Kikyō in place from the lower end. She added in the thick canopy of leaves above that, and then the equally thick and soft grass beneath it. The bushes ringing the clearing, providing a barrier around the back and sides. Then she sketched in Kikyō.

First her hair, straight and long, curving softly with the angle of her seating. Then came the face, with closed eyes and a slight frown on her lips. Her chihaya top was a wide sleeve dangling down, with large, long stitches in the sleeve, and then form-fitting along her torso. Next came her hakama, wide and flowing and (somehow) immaculately pressed and creased. She added in the ties along the side, the two strings tied in a bow. The larger bow in the front of her hakama. Then came the souls, and to show that they _were_ souls, rather than exceptionally bright fireflies, she added in shinidamachū carrying wavering flames of light; more souls, struggling for escape. Each shinidamachū gained a gently curving, beak-like muzzle, then almond eyes, ridges beside them. Following that came the fin along their heads and what could be their necks, and then the fins on each place where an ear might be. Six triple-jointed, slender and tiny legs ending in wickedly sharp points. Then the slender, long bodies ending in a possible tail.

Now it was time for the colours.

The centre of the tree trunk and the innermost sides of the branches gained an ice blue, shading out to a darker blue around the edges and in the shadows of the leaves. The leaves were practically charcoal grey, and the bushes were a slate blue. Kikyō's hair was raven-wing black, her eyes lined with lush black lashes, and her skin was pale as paper, even her lips. There was almost no difference whatsoever in the colour of it and of her chihaya. Then the stitching on the sleeves became red, as red as her hakama were, with a darker shade where her legs were hooked over the more slender branch.

The shinidamachū were a pale, icy green, holding soft white souls ringed in the blue of flames. Then she took an eraser to the page, erasing perfect circles to be the souls of dead maidens.

There, it was done!

Kagome still remembered the tortured look on Kikyō's face as Kagome's soul reacted to her desperate fear for Inuyasha's life. She didn't really like him much at all, but he was still her travelling companion and she needed his help to get the Shikon right now. Inuyasha clearly did not feel the same about her though. The poor boy was mixed up and confused, probably solely because Kagome looked like Kikyō, but the point still stood. He didn't know what he wanted or who he wanted; the living girl he assumed was his ex-girlfriend's reincarnation or the dead ex-girlfriend herself.

The hanyō she was travelling with was brash, abrasive, and rude, but he was also kind in his own way and – right now, at least, he hadn't to begin with – wanted to help people and do the right thing. Well, sort of. He was still complaining whenever there wasn't a shard involved, but it was only that – just complaining, not refusal to help. So it could be that much worse.

Sighing, she closed her sketchbook and leaned back on her arms, smiling when she sensed Sesshōmaru-sa—no she wasn't to call him that any more— _Sesshōmaru_ behind her.

She looked up and sure enough he was just stepping forward, glancing over her body to check that she was unharmed, before he stepped over beside her and gracefully sat down on the grass, one leg extended, the other bent, and his right arm resting along it. "Hello Kagome."

"Hello Sesshōmaru."

He tilted his head, asking, "How are you this day, miko?"

She hummed softly and responded, "I'm doing well, mostly."

Sesshōmaru's left hand reached out and touched the centre of her chest where her heart was. "It still pains you then, mine?"

She blushed at the claiming nickname and then frowned a bit, nodding softly, "Yes. It will as long as Kikyō is alive, considering that a piece of my soul is holding her here."

The growl he gave off was impressive, and he clenched his hand into a fist, "The undead bitch needs to _die_."

Kagome smiled and captured his hand in her own, thumbs tracing the stripe on his wrist and gently holding his ever-so-deadly claws with her palms. "Thank you, my lord. But I do need to point out that at least as long as she is alive, your half brother is unable to make up his mind, and because of this is not actively pursuing me. I wouldn't know how to deal with an unwanted suitor that I need to travel with constantly, so it is a small blessing."

He huffed softly and turned his hand over, extending his strong fingers along her wrist, and she clasped his hand happily as he lowered it to the ground. "This is true, but even so. It angers this one to see you in so much constant pain – and do not think of downplaying it, this one felt how strong and steady the ache is with your drawing of Urasue."

She had been stunned to find out that her natural empathy leaked into her drawings, but it was a pleasant surprise, and she sat forward some, resting her chin on her knees and wrapping her free arm about the jean-clad appendages. "I wasn't going to downplay it, Sesshōmaru, however one can grow used to an astonishing number of things, and for me, this is one of them. It aches, yes, but the ache is so permeated through my being that it almost feels as if I had always lived with it. Besides, Kikyō is so troubled, so sad, so angry… I pity her. I do wish for her freedom, and do believe it will only be found in death, but if she can find some happiness in this un-life she is living, then I will be happy as well."

There was silence for a time before her gorgeous suitor stroked his thumb along the sensitive stripe on her own flesh. "Hn. It astounds this one how generous and giving your heart is, but I suppose it is only fitting. You would not be you without such a large heart, and this Sesshōmaru wishes for all of Kagome as herself to be his. It is… endearing."

She smiled brightly to hear that coming from his mouth, then took a risk and swiftly leaned over to kiss his cheek. The blank, stunned look in his eyes as she pulled away was highly gratifying for her, almost as much as the smirk that lined his face when he recovered. She didn't care that she was feeding his ego; while it was large, it was also well-earned. He _was_ the most powerful living being in Nihon after all. "Thank you, Sesshōmaru. For wanting me as I am, and not trying to change me."

"Hn… Those who wish to change perfection are fools."

She stuttered at that compliment, "H-hey, I-I'm nowhere near perfect. I have klutz attacks, I'm still learning to shoot accurately, and I still struggle with calling my ki out when I'm scared, worried, or freaked out."

He tilted his head and turned towards her, his free hand cupping her chin, thumb caressing her jaw, as he stated "Kagome, no being is truly perfect. Even this one has his flaws. The imperfections in a person, however, are what make them alive, and your imperfections do not lessen the fact that you are this Sesshōmaru's perfect match. No other being in Nihon is as strong as you are, as giving and kind and sweet. Whilst those things initially did not interest me, this one can admit that as he has come to know the miko Kagome, her generous heart has simply drawn him in, confused him, and pleased him."

Kagome squeaked as he nuzzled her cheek in a delightfully inu gesture, before rubbing his cheek against hers and pulling back after kissing her forehead. Oh Kami, why did he have to be so _perfect_?

She caught herself there and thought. It was true that she still felt slightly undeserving of him but didn't that in itself simply prove his point? Sesshōmaru was by no means truly perfect. He was vain, prideful, discriminatory, quick to anger, and a hardened killer. _Not_ a murderer, not really. He was a yōkai and their culture was different, but even so, he was merciless and pitiless and the _killing perfection_.

That did not make her any less fond of him because he was so different from her. In fact, it just made her like him all the more. He was intelligent as all hell, kind to those he believed merited kindness, unforgiving of those who harmed anyone under his protection, and unforgiving of slights against himself, and she was just becoming more and more entangled in his charm, his manners, his grace, his honour.

Sighing happily, she squeezed his hand and rested her head on his shoulder, closing her eyes and smiling as she felt his soft lips brush her forehead again, then her cheek. "Thank you, Sesshōmaru."

"You are welcome, Kagome."

See, he was even learning! He could have denied her again, but instead he accepted her thanks.

Kagome could not be happier in this moment.


	8. Chapter 8

Sesshōmaru watched as his miko hummed to herself, her "pencil" sliding across the parchment she was drawing on. He was neither spying nor hiding, but giving her the illusion – because even cloaked she could always sense him, which simply proved she was meant to be _his_ – of privacy. He wished to see a drawing in progress, however, and so she had invited him to watch as she sketched and coloured the picture of her foe – and his, simply because any enemy of hers was also an enemy of his for threatening what belonged to him.

Settling in, he watched avidly as she drew, more eager than he cared to admit to see his future mate practise her extraordinary talent.

* * *

First came the head, Kagome thought as she began to draw Naraku. Fuzzy fur making the strange bump at the top of the head, followed by bare skin covering the ears of the baboon pelt, then the outline of the cheeks and elongated muzzle, then the blank holes for eyes. She finished rounding out the head of the dead animal – and where the hell had he even gotten that thing?! – before drawing in the dark hole where Naraku's shadowed face was. Then came the thick ruff above the shoulders – or what she assumed were the shoulders – followed by the pelt widening and flowing outwards on all sides, ending in a ragged, torn hemline. Then she added in fifteen thick, writhing tentacles, two of them stretching towards the viewer and all of them covered in repulsive veins straining beneath the skin. Once the deceptively simple Naraku was completed, she began sketching numerous saimyōshō surrounding him, preventing Miroku-ni from using his kazaana.

The saimyōshō gained two bulging eyes first, the slit pupils and iris-less eyes covered in a protective skin and surrounded by thick lashes or whatever they were. Then the pincers for mouths, followed by a roundish torso, with six dangling, long, triple-jointed legs. Finally came the abdomen, long and nearly the shape of a curved daikon until it got to the sharp, wickedly long stinger. Then she added in the three thick stripes on each abdomen, and four narrow, pointed wings, huffing when she finished. Bleh.

She hated those fucking things.

 _Okay, time to colour_. She wondered what Sesshōmaru thought about this, and hummed a bit. Maybe she should draw Sango-san and her beloved Kirara too? Just so he could see her draw something more in-depth and detailed? Well; she would see later. First, colouring. The fur became a dirty off-white, the skin on the face a light blue colour, and the tentacles were a purple-ish brown colour. Then came the saimyōshō. First, the eyes, blood red sclera and black pupils, followed by cream coloured skin and black lashes – and what the hell kind of wasps had freaking _lashes_ , anyway?! Next came the dull violet torso, black for the legs and pincers. Following that was the abdomen, a dark goldenrod colour with black for the stripes. Red for the stinger, followed by the transparent, sharp wings.

She was dissatisfied with this whole mess. Not just the picture – she'd done well for all it was comparatively simple – but the whole damn mess. Naraku was one tricky bastard, and even though Sango-san was travelling with them now, it was largely only because they had a similar purpose in seeking out Naraku; even Kirara's attachment to Kagome because of Kagome having Kirara's scent and ki on her from her latest visit home didn't sway her very much yet.

Then again, Sango-san was still deeply in mourning over her lost family and village. So it made sense that she would be hesitant to get attached to anyone else right now, although Kagome could feel the older woman getting somewhat attached to her anyhow. She was grateful for Kagome's care of her; and was _fully_ aware that Kagome had been subtly aiding in her healing by using her ki. Sango-san was wounded seriously enough that she couldn't be healed immediately – it would tax her body and exhaust her far beyond what was healthy and recoverable – but she could be healed subtly and over a span of a week or so.

That thought decided her. "I'm going to draw Sango-san and Kirara, if you want to watch that as well you are welcome to do so. It will be far more detailed than the previous picture was," she said quietly into the still, cool air.

It had been a little bit over a month and three weeks since her first trip here, since she fell down the well the very first time and landed in a world so like and yet unlike her own.

Flipping the page over in her sketchbook, she composed the image in her mind and chewed on her lip slightly. She hadn't seen this, but knowing Kirara as well as she did, she knew that this would be a common sight in the future: she would be drawing Sango-san riding Kirara in the air.

She outlined Kirara first. The sharply pointed ears, the large head with a wide muzzle and sharp sabre-tooth like fangs. A surprisingly cute nose, large eyes with slit pupils and no iris and the elongated diamond shape in the centre of her forehead. Then came the neck, followed by thick ruff that went all the way down to her legs. Kagome fondly remembered sleeping curled up between Kirara's legs with her hands tangled in that amazingly soft fur.

The front legs came next, each with a stripe above the paws, which she temporarily shaded to show that the paws were dark as well. Then she outlined Kirara's body, back legs – again shading to show the dark paws and stripe – and then her twin tails, each with a stripe that looked like two because of how the ends avoided each other: you couldn't see that on the paws because it was in the back. Then Kagome tipped in the same shading as the paws. Then she added in the flames somewhat covering the tails and paws.

Now it was time for Sango-san! First came the legs, straddling Kirara – there was a cord on each long boot – then the shin guard, and then the knee guard, followed by her thighs. Then came the torso, and she detailed the interesting stomach and groin protective plate, as well as the scarf tied around her waist and swaying in the air off the right side of her body followed by the sword tucked into the scarf. Then came the left arm, hand buried in Kirara's ruff, elbow protected by another pad, and the round shoulder guards she was becoming used to by now. Next came the neck, covered by her skintight outfit and with a Chinese-style collar with a design on her shoulder. Sango's face was heart-shaped, with wide eyes, a serious expression, and bangs that covered all but the centre of her forehead, cut in a straight line. Her hair was up in a high ponytail and hung down to the centre of her back. Then came her right arm, bent at the elbow with her hand slid into the leather of her hiraikotsu, then came the large yōkai bone boomerang itself, only the ends of it visible beyond Kirara's body and Sango-san's body. Both ends gained leather wrapping and near the top, a handle with a tassel for throwing the hiraikotsu. Each of the protective pads was secured by a strip of cloth.

Colour time!

Kirara's fur became a soft cream shade, with black tipping her paws and tails, and shading in the stripes above (on the paws) and below (on the twin tails) said tips. Her eyes became a ruby red, with black pupils, and between them the diamond mark became black as well, along with her ears. The fangs were sharp white, and the flames lining her appendages were red and orange.

Sango's outfit was coloured in a deep black, and the guards and pads covering her more vulnerable areas were coloured a soft carnation pink; the ties securing them becoming a deep red. The scarf became red as well, as was the sheath of her katana. Her hair became a beautiful medium brown, her eyes a shade darker, and her skin a pale peach. The hiraikotsu was a shade darker than Kirara's fur, with light fawn brown leather and golden handles with a red bead above their swaying tassels. The handle of her katana, strangely, looked metal, a light steel in appearance.

Smiling happily and much more satisfied with this piece of art, she stretched and turned back two pages to the picture of Kikyō after capturing the one of Sango-san and Kirara with her camera. The action was a clear invitation to Sesshōmaru.

* * *

Sesshōmaru smiled slightly as his miko finished her second picture for the day and then turned to a previous picture he had not yet seen – the presence of the taijiya meant that he could not come to visit as freely because if anybody would suspect, it would be one who knew yōkai culture so well; while the monk knew it relatively well also, he was also more preoccupied with his own thoughts – in a blatant request for his presence. Fingering the necklace he had created for his future mate, he leapt down from the tree and walked over to her, giving her an unconsciously fond look.

Kagome smiled softly as he came near, and then beckoned to the ground next to her; he sat and relieved her of the "sketchbook" after tucking the necklace into his haori sleeve – the gift could wait a bit.

Sesshōmaru took one look at the drawing and immediately understood his miko's feelings for the undead bitch, even though he did not agree with them one whit. Sadness and pity permeated the ethereal image on the parchment, the miko in the tree filled with a strange feeling of understanding and acceptance as the souls radiated a sad longing – longing? Ah; his miko wished the souls to be free, rather than entrapped. He reached a hand out and combed his claws through her silky hair gently; Kagome leaned into his touch trustingly – which gave him a smug, content feeling – and he continued the action as he turned the page to see the two pieces of art he had witnessed her creating.

The picture of Naraku was filled with distaste, dislike, and disgust, saturated with a fervent wish for death that was unusual for his miko. Then again, the spider hanyō had harmed all of those travelling with her currently.

The second portrait, that of the taijiya and a familiar nekomata – oh, it was Kirara; he would have a chat with her when he visited his half brother again – was filled with a fond feeling and a sad feeling. The taijiya had been grievously harmed by Naraku, and so Kagome felt compassion and sadness for her, but for Kirara… Hn. Intriguing. "You are incredibly fond of the nekomata for one who just met her, Kagome."

Kagome smiled brightly at him and exclaimed, "Ah! But I already know Kirara! From the future, that is. In my time she taught me how to use my ki – I know I mentioned that to you but I never said her name because she made me promise not to mention her to anybody until I had met her in my travels on my own."

He raised an eyebrow at that – well it certainly explained a few unusual things, like where in the world his miko had picked up yōkai etiquette and why she could use her ki in the ways that she could – before nodding and then reaching into his haori sleeve. The discontented sound Kagome made as he stopped grooming her was adorable – _Adorable. Hn. The miko continues to change me_. – and endearing. He would continue his actions in a more proper and thorough manner after the gift was accepted.

He pulled out the slender chain with tiny pearls embedded in every other link, and held it out. "It is an old custom – one not followed by many these days – for a prospective mate to gift his or her chosen with something suitable to the specific person they are courting. This one wished to create something as beautiful as you are and useful as well. This necklace allows for you to summon my aid whenever it is needed, and also allows for a barrier to be created using this Sesshōmaru's ki, which is embedded into the necklace itself."

The way her eyes lit up and she gasped was immensely pleasing to Sesshōmaru, and he pulled his future mate into his lap as tears began to swim in her eyes, stroking down her back soothingly and growling a comforting tone to her. "B-but, S-Sesshōmaru, this is too much!"

He shook his head and held his palm out for her to hand him her current necklace. "Nay, miko mine. It is just enough, Kagome. You are far more extraordinary than you believe yourself to be. Besides, it is beneficial to all of us if you have an extra layer of protection."

She smiled a watery smile at him and explored the beautiful, delicate chain, before turning around; Sesshōmaru secured it around Kagome's neck easily. Then he pulled her into his lap and nuzzled her shoulder, before beginning to groom her hair gently and contently. "Nnh. Feels good."

He smiled slightly and hummed. "It is supposed to, mine."

All was right in the world for now.

* * *

 **A/N:** **So, okay, I need some advice.** Should I continue writing down all/most of their adventures and showing Kagome sketching most of their enemies and such, or should I slowly begin moving on to the more important events and maybe skipping over and just touching on the smaller adventures and such? Or perhaps showing Sesshōmaru's reactions to the smaller adventures, but not her sketching them? What do you all think? I've one more chapter written after this, but I'd like your advice on how to take this before I attempt to write more.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N:** Due to popular demand, this fic will be shifting in focus now. I'll still be posting some descriptions and Sesshōmaru's reactions to sketches, but from here on out, I'll be doing more things like describing their journeys, attempting (it might not work) to go into other points of view, and such. The sketching was a fantastic introductory mechanism, but even I'm struggling with continuing it because, well.. it's getting pretty redundant now. I might add in extra descriptions when meeting characters to compensate or something, not sure yet. Anyway, here is the last written chapter I have completed! Hope y'all enjoy it, and please have patience with me while I take a break to get my buffer up and running again and begin to move things along more swiftly. :3

* * *

" **The** _ **fuck**_ **did you say** **?** "

Kagome sighed softly and rubbed her arms, looking over at Sango-chan pleadingly, but she grimaced and shook her head. Damn. She couldn't think of anything else that would sound like what she had asked Kagome and Inuyasha had had the misfortune of hearing. Miroku-ni was sitting close to her, an arm comfortingly around her, and Shippō looked up at her from her lap and mouthed, "Sesshōmaru-sama?" to which she nodded. He smiled brightly and nodded back. Clearly someone approved, which at least made her smile for a second.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked, it's such a private question and it honestly isn't anybody else's business."

Sango was still trying to help! Oh, but Inuyasha had no manners whatsoever and wouldn't _care_ that asking such a thing was breathtakingly rude unless you were related – Kagome had called Sango-chan "Sango-ne" last night, which had led to her asking _that question_ right as Inuyasha got back to camp; unexpectedly early.

"Like I give a _fuck_ about that! I _said_ , **what** did you **say**?!"

Sango was not having that though, and said, "You have _perfectly_ good ears you idiot! _I am_ _ **not**_ _repeating myself!_ "

He growled and stalked over to Kagome, roughly hauling her up by her wrist, which made her yell in protest, "Sit, boy!"

He sat, alright. Three feet into the earth. "This is **none** of your **business**! It is _mine_ and _mine alone_!"

"He only wants a concubine you know, you stupid fucking wench!" She heard drifting up from the hole. That sent a gasp rippling through Sango, a disapproved "tsk" from Miroku-ni, and an angry "mew" from Kirara. Kagome was so grateful that the lovely, wonderful nekomata who had been her teacher was here with her now. Shippō, wisely, didn't say anything. Inuyasha bullied her son terribly and she hadn't been able to train him out of doing it as much as she liked yet.

Sango-ne hadn't been travelling with them very long yet, but unfortunately, it _had_ been long enough for Kagome to see Sango as an older sister and cause this mess. A good two or three weeks sooner than she had wanted it to happen.

Sighing, she was about to speak, when _his_ voice came from behind her and he looked at her, clearly taking in her infuriated scent and smirking, "Hello, miko mine."

Oh, hm. He liked her pissed off? That was good to know. She smiled softly and bowed politely, her ire immediately softening as she watched him, "Hello, Sesshōmaru. We've been found out. Oh well."

Furious cursing erupted from Inuyasha, and she slapped him back into the hole he'd made once he got out, immediately infuriated again. Her son did _not_ need to be hearing this shit! Once in a while was fine, but not barrages of his vile language. "Don't you _ever_ insult Sesshōmaru like that _again_! If I _ever_ hear you spreading such vicious lies about him I will fucking _purify_ you, do you hear me?! He is far, far too honourable to ever do something so distasteful as mislead someone, much less take a concubine. Unlike _some_ people I know, _Sesshōmaru_ doesn't lead other people on."

She was talking about how Inuyasha kept trying (and failing, because she wasn't interested in him) to string her along and wavering between liking her more and Kikyō more.

Shippō clambered up her body to her shoulder and nuzzled into her hair, "Yeah. Mama's right. Sesshōmaru-sama has repeatedly refused to take anyone to his bed who isn't a mate. He's pretty notorious for it among yōkai, actually."

"Hm," Miroku said, "Somehow… That isn't as surprising as it feels like it should be."

Sango-ne simply scoffed, "Seriously. I was asking about a _courting mark_. No yōkai would ever put that on someone who isn't considered to be their mate in their eyes. He's only not claimed her because he wants to win her heart completely. I knew that even before I knew who claimed her."

" _You, Inuyasha, are a right fool to think the things you do about your brother,_ " was Kirara's input.

Looking around at the clearing full of people set against him, Inuyasha raged and stomped off into the trees, growling all the while, and Kagome sighed softly, her fingers coming up to play with her son's tail.

Once he was no longer audible, Sango turned contritely to her, "I'm sorry, Kagome-chan. I thought he would be gone another mark or two."

She smiled softly and shook her head, "At least now I'm not going to have to sneak around any more like I had been. Well, not that it'd been much but we had to be more careful of our words just in case before, and now that isn't the case, right?"

She turned to Sesshōmaru at that, who lidded his eyes, "Hn. This one had hoped for a better response considering the clay doll, but supposes it was too much to ask. It is fine; after all, even before marking you, this Sesshōmaru had not wished to have to seek you out only when the hanyō was no longer around. His miko deserves more consideration than such actions belie."

That, of course, made Kagome blush softly, but she smiled up at him and stepped closer, touching his shoulder gently. "How are you this day, my lord?" She asked him that somewhat teasingly – now that he was officially courting her, she was no longer required to use -sama or "my lord" but she still felt a bit awkward referring to the Lord of the West so informally, so she put a teasing lilt into her voice to make her use allowable. From the look he always gave her, Sesshōmaru knew what she was doing, but he hadn't commented on it yet and likely wouldn't until it had been longer than he wished which would hopefully not happen. She didn't think she would be more than another week needing the slight barriers to make her more comfortable – and to be kind, he still often called her "miko" which set her at ease after his comment to her all that time ago.

The weight on her shoulder shifted, breaking her thoughts, and she looked over to see Shippō scrutinising Sesshōmaru in an… _interesting…_ way. "Yes."

After that random word, he scrambled down her arm, leapt onto Sesshōmaru's shoulder, nuzzled under the daiyōkai's jaw—what the _hell_?!—and then ran over to sit on Kirara, scratching between her ears blithely. Kagome looked over at Sesshōmaru in confusion, after glancing between them for a few seconds. "This one made an offer a sennight ago. Your kit has accepted and will allow this Sesshōmaru to be his father figure from now on."

She smiled softly at that and stroked down his arm lightly before caressing his hand and holding it tight, going onto her toes to kiss his cheek, "Thank you, Sesshōmaru."

Then she turned and moved to her bag, "While the jerk is gone, let's all have some tea! Miroku-ni, would you get the fire started while I prep everything else?"

She got out her ceramic tea cups, her tea bags, and her kettle and went to the stream, filling the kettle up and placing the tea bags that everyone preferred – she kept twelve kinds of tea on her at all times – in their respective cups, before stacking them again and carefully walking back to camp. She was by no means overtly clumsy, but Kagome had klutz attacks at the most inopportune moments sometimes.

She walked back in to an… _interesting_ conversation. "Hello again, Kirara. Many thanks for your service over the years and into the future. It has been some time, how fare ye?"

The nekomata turned a laughing red eye over to Kagome and she started moving again, placing the kettle on a branch suspended over the fire and lining up the tea cups in front of the fire. She was terribly curious until she realised that he meant the service of helping to guard the Shikon and then lost interest entirely.

Sango-ne, however was clearly intrigued, and she whispered over to Kagome, "What is he talking about, do you know?"

She smiled and spoke softly – not whispering but just talking quietly – in response, "Kirara was guarding the Shikon for several centuries. Um, Sango-ne? Would… If you like… Well…"

The taijiya laughed and shook her head, "Just spit it out, Kagome-chan."

Kagome inhaled and exhaled then said, "Um, if you want, I can make it so you could talk to Kirara too. You weren't healed enough for it before, but you are now and you shouldn't be left out when she's your best friend and partner."

Sango-chan gasped and reached out to Kagome, "Oh! Really, Kagome-chan?! I would _love_ for you to do that! Thank you so, so very much!"

Kagome smiled softly and patted the ground in front of her. "Sit here, seiza, please."

Sango-ne obeyed and Kagome rested one palm along her forehead and the other along her neck. Then she sent her ki _in_ and _up_ , concentrating on finding the switch that allowed a person to gain the ability for mindspeech and switching it from "off" to "on". Then she removed her hands and smiled as Sango's face brightened with happiness at hearing Kirara's conversation with Sesshōmaru, which was just ending.

Kagome was happy to have made her sister happy.


End file.
